January 25, 2012 (Shirley Allen)
Monthly sales of existing homes and condominiums in Massachusetts improved again in December, but a strong year-end finish still wasn’t enough to beat last year’s sales totals according to the latest data from the Massachusetts Association of Realtors®.
An estimated total of 4,617 existing homes and condos were sold in the Bay State in December. That was 8.1 percent higher than the 4,271 homes sold in November but 1.1 percent lower than the 4,669 homes sold in December 2010.
Trisha McCarthy, President of MAR, stated, “In general, we are encouraged by the strides the market made in the second half of the year to close out 2011. We believe that the unusual snow storm in October, 2011, which caused property damage and left people without power for days, dampened what likely would have been stronger December figures. On the other hand, the milder winter, coupled with low interest rates and reasonable home prices, should improve the outlook.”
Sales of detached single-family homes accounted for 3,361 of the total sales in December, up 4.0 percent from 3,233 sales in November but 0.4 percent lower than the 3,373 detached homes sold in December of 2010.
The median sales price for a detached single-family home in December was $271,900, which was 4.3 percent lower than the $284,250 sales price posted in November and 4.0 percent lower than the $283,300 median sales price for a detached home in December of last year.
Condominium sales accounted for 1,256 of the total sales in December, up 11.2 percent from 1,130 sales in November but 3.1 percent lower than the 1,296 condos sold in December of 2010.
The median sales price for a condo in December was $259,900, which was 1.9 percent higher than the sales price of $255,000 in November and 3.8 percent higher than the sales price of $250,500 for a condo in December of last year.
The number of detached single-family homes available for sale in December declined 9.8 percent compared to last year, falling from 26,574 listings to 23,958 listings, which left a 7.3 months supply of homes on the market, down from an 8.0 months supply a year ago. Detached single-family homes typically took an average of 119 days to sell in December, up from 112 a year earlier.
Listings for condos fell 20.5 percent in December, from 10,010 in December of last year to 7,955 listings this year. That left a 6.3 months supply available for sale, down from a 7.5 months supply a year ago. Condos typically took an average of 122 days to sell in December compared to an average of 114 days in December of last year.
A strong showing at the end of the year still wasn’t enough to beat 2010’s total sales as a total of 54,341 existing homes and condos were sold in 2011 compared to 55,985 in 2010.
Tags: existing homes, condos, sales, median home prices, Massachusetts
